Bulldogs earn gutsy win over Lafayette

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Highlighted by a double-double performance by sophomore Naana Ankoma-Mensa (Brampton, Ont.), the Bryant University women's basketball team earned a gutsy 56-48 victory over visiting Lafayette College on Sunday afternoon at the Chace Athletic Center.

In a game highlighted by physical play and a handful of dead-ball stoppages, it was the Bulldogs (6-3) who came out ahead, locking down in the final stretch and using some clutch shooting to move past the visiting Leopards (3-7), who finished the game with 27 turnovers – matching a season-high for a Bulldog opponent.

Making the occasion more special was the tremendous support displayed by the Bryant University student body, as more than 700 fans came out to support the Assistant Director of the Academic Center for Excellence, Peter Rutledge, who recently suffered a setback in his recovery from cancer.  Highlighted by a halftime group photograph and personal Get Well Soon video messages recorded for Peter and his family, more than $2,000 was raised to benefit the Rutledge family in their time of need.

For the fourth-straight game, a Bulldog recorded a double-double, as Ankoma-Mensa hit the mark for the third time in as many contests by virtue of a 15-point, 12-board effort to lead Bryant on the offensive end.  Also aiding the Bulldogs was a phenomenal outing from junior Danielle Douglas (Silver Springs, Md.), who set new season and career highs with 20 points while tying a previous career high in steals with eight.

The Bulldogs finished the afternoon 19-of-58 (32.8 percent) from the field, while the Leopards shot slightly better by means of a 19-of-57 clip (33.3 percent).  Bryant also did not fare well in free-throw territory, only hitting 17-of-31 for a 54.8 percent conversion rate from the charity stripe.

Bryant was outrebounded for just the third time this year, as the Leopards out-boarded the Bulldogs by a 48-39 margin.  The Black and Gold were the more aggressive squad in the takeaway department, finishing with a 13-7 lead in steals, while the Leopards earned one more block, finishing with a 4-3 lead in rejections.

After falling behind by four to start the contest, the Bulldogs reeled off seven unanswered points, with Douglas doing some early damage with a pair of baskets.  The Leopards did themselves no favors by accumulating eight turnovers in the first 10 minutes of regulation.

Junior Meredith Soper (Winthrop, Mass.) gave the home team a five-point lead on the back end of a give-and-go Bryant steal, laying it up and in for her first points of the game.  Lafayette answered with five-straight points, highlighted by a three-point play by Danielle Fiacco.  The Bulldogs answered with a cross-court pass hauled down by Douglas, who layed it up and in to knot the game at 13-13 with 7:45 to go in the first half.

Just past the 10-minute mark of the half, Lafayette pulled ahead with six unanswered points following a timeout on the floor to go up 19-13.  Bryant pushed ahead with Soper tallying four of the next six Bulldog points, but Lafayette went up by five with 3:37 to play off a three-ball by Ashley Springer.

Douglas led all players with eight points and five steals in the first frame, while senior Brittany Stahura (Amsterdam, N.Y.) recorded five boards in the stanza.  Fiacco paced the Leopards seven points, six boards and one block.

The Bulldogs were hindered by a 25.0 percent shooting clip for the half, and could not capitalize on 14 free-throw chances, hitting just 57.1 percent of their opportunities from the charity stripe.  Lafayette, meanwhile, hit 11-of-28 from the floor to the tune of a 39.3 percent field-goal clip.

Lafayette clawed back, scoring six of the next eight points in the game and marking the beginning of an intense, back-and-forth stretch of play.  Ankoma-Mensa pushed the home team's lead back to three with a gutsy pull-up jumper in the paint to make it 35-32 with 11:20 remaining in the game.

After the halfway point of the second stanza, turnovers began to haunt the Bulldogs, as three-straight giveaways allowed the Leopards to draw even at 39-39 with 6:35 to play. 

Both teams were in the bonus by the six-minute mark of the half, as Douglas put the home team ahead by a pair by converting both shots of a one-and-one before Lafayette answered with a free throw on the other end.

Ankoma-Mensa finished off a clutch inbounds play by hooking a shot into the basket with no time left on the shot clock to increase the lead to three, but Lafayette moved into the double bonus following an ensuing Bulldog foul, after which Samantha Jordan nailed two free throws to bring the Leopards to within one.

Back on the other side of the floor, sophomore Steph Cardamone (Freehold, N.J.) hit a long two from the left side to keep pace with the Leopards, moving the home team in front 45-42 with 3:53 left in regulation.

Douglas enjoyed a clutch sequence with a block, a steal and a huge assist, throwing it up to Ankoma-Mensa who waited for the opening before laying it up for one of the biggest baskets of the game and a five-point lead.  Seconds later, another Lafayette turnover sent the Bulldogs back up the court on a fastbreak, where Ankoma-Mensa again finished it off to make it 49-42 with 2:12 to go.

Down by seven with under two minutes to play, the Leopards were forced to foul, sending the Bulldogs to the line on three-straight trips.  Despite one last three-ball by Madeline Fahan, Bryant fended off the late onslaught by the visitors to earn the victory.

Bryant will enjoy a 10-day break during final exams, next taking the floor on Wednesday, Dec. 21 at Holy Cross, with opening tip set for 11:45 a.m. in Worcester, Mass.

For continuing coverage of Bryant University women's basketball, check back at www.bryantbulldogs.com, and be sure to follow the Bulldogs on Twitter @BryantAthletics.